UFA, Russia, July 8 (Reuters) - Beijing and Moscow discussed the potential participation of Chinese companies in natural resources exploration in Russia’s Arctic, a senior Chinese Foreign Ministry official said on Wednesday.

Russia has been struggling to speed up oil and gas exploration in resource-rich offshore Arctic areas due to Western sanctions restricting foreign companies from helping Russia tap the deposits. (Reporting by Katya Golubkova; writing by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Alexander Winning)